1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to user interfaces. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for processing a rich media user interface composed of a plurality of component objects that is capable of transferring information from a group of component objects having a specific function but not supporting the export of information to a group of component objects importing information only through predetermined paths through an unpredictable path.
2. Description of the Related Art
A user interface is a physical or virtual means implemented to provide interaction between a user and an object or system, such as machine or computer program, so that the user can input manipulation information for the system to output an execution result. Typically, the user interface is implemented as a system-specific application so as to operate in the system designated by the designer and is accordingly limited in configuration. Recently, the user interface has evolved from the static arrangement of the image and text buttons to a rich media content composed of various configurable media objects including text, audio, video, font, image, graphics, and the like. The Binary Format for Scene (BIFS) and the Lightweight Application Scene Representation (LASeR) are representative rich media standards. The LASeR is a recent rich media standard designed for representing and delivering rich media services using various multimedia elements such as scene description, video, audio, image, font, text, metadata, script, etc.
With the emergence of new services integrating diverse types of media including video, voice, and data, along with the diversification of terminals and services, a flexible and dynamic rich media interface, applicable to heterogeneous devices and even remote devices, beyond the concept of a device-specific functional interface is needed.